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For those on the mainland of Asgard, the war didn't start the moment the portal opened. The warriors of Asgard watched as two figures cloaked in red battled the behemoths in the distance, engaging them in an aerial battle that resembled an exotic dance ritual. The soldiers could the black swarm in the distance slowly approaching them, and they all gripped their weapons just a little tighter. The first swarm was taken down by a giant wave of water – which had the avengers cracking a wan smile at that, knowing that Percy was doing his best out there, alone, to slow the progress of the chitauri. The second fell the same way, but the third got past the bridge, the black dot it was becoming individual figures as the chitauri approached the heart of the golden realm. Behind them, thousands more chitauri poured out, their numbers so massive it blotted out the sun.

Steve was reminded of a nest of angry hornets as he watched the swarm approach. Their buzzing grew louder and louder, until they filled the ears of every man and woman who fought on the battlefield. The Asgardian warriors responded to an unspoken command as the swarm drew closer, the first row of warriors dropping to a knee with their shield on top, the second and third row coming up to lock their shields together, forming a solid golden shield just in time for the first wave of attack. Steve ducked behind his own shield, choosing to use the buildings around him as his cover. He didn't see Natasha, but he wasn't worried, he knew that she could take care of herself. When the first wave of attack finally stopped, the warriors disengaged from their phalanx formation and ran forward, their spears leveled ahead of them as they plunged into the mass of chitauri who had reached the ground.

Steve joined in the battle, a cacophony of metal striking against metal accompanied by roars of challenge and loud, angry screeching. He threw his shield, punching a chitauri in the jaw and slamming his elbow into another's throat. He held up a hand just in time to catch his shield. The vibranium disc having taken down a dozen of the chitauri as it completed its path. He leapt of the fallen aliens and slammed into another horde of chitauri, pushing against their weapons. He heard a shout, "Cap!" and ducked, feeling a pressure on his back before it was gone. He looked up to see Natasha flipping over the heads of the chitauri, activating her Widow's Bite as she did, sending volts of electricity into the aliens.

She landed on the other side of the group, turning back to give him a smirk, "Thanks for the boost Cap." Before she ran off, leaping at a pair of chitauri accosting an Asgardian warrior, snapping both their necks easily. Steve just sighed and lifted his shield, deflecting a blast from the chitauri. He let his instincts take over, looking out for the Asgardian warriors and taking down as many chitauri as he could.

He heard the sound of engine whining, quickly slamming his shield into one of the creature's face. He turned just in time to see Iron Man land, making charred bodies out of the aliens surrounding him. Lifting up his shield, he braced himself as Tony fired both repulsors at him, tilting the shield slightly to deflect the beam to cut through the throng of chitauri like a laser.

"Heh." Tony's disembodied voice said, "That never gets old."

Steve smirked, "Don't get too ahead of yourself Stark, there's more to come."

It was hard to snark when others couldn't see your face, but Tony Stark somehow managed to do so fantastically as he flew off.

"Catch ya later old man!"

Steve sighed, that was one joke that was never going to grow old.

"Cap!"

Steve turned to face Natasha, who had called him, wading through a mass of bodies to try to get to the female assassin. When he was close enough, she shouted, "Barton says they need help!"

Steve threw his shield, grabbing a chitauri by the neck and throwing it into another alien, doing a roundhouse kick to send them both sprawling to the ground. "Where is he?" he shouted back, crouching to give Natasha a boost, the assassin flipping over him gracefully to tackle a chitauri off a low flying hovercraft.

"The courtyard! Near the main hall of Asgard!"

He hissed, "What about you?"

"I'll be fine Cap, I'll handle these boys here. If you see Bruce, tell him to go green!"

He groaned and ran through the mass, fighting his way through the bodies.

Percy gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, not moving an inch. A breeze ruffled his hair, but he remained motionless where he stood opposite the second prince of Asgard. He felt his heart clench at the sight of his lover – ex-lover? – a twinge of phantom pain on his throat. The god looked as if he had hastily patched himself up and thrown up a glamor to pass off as presentable – a haphazard spell by the looks of it. Percy had spent so long by the god's side that he could tell the difference between the god's true visage and when he put on a mask – like what he was doing now.

A familiar staff hung from his fingers, a deep ebony staff embedded with crystals. The staff was almost as long as Loki was tall, with two pointed ends, with a glowing, pulsating orb at one end. The god himself was not smiling, nor was he expressing any emotion as he would normally do when engaging in battle. His favorite technique was to set off his enemy with his silver tongue, making them lash out predictably and rashly. He knew that he could not use that on Percy – and neither did he want to – the demigod had faced enough enemies to use his rage against them. Percy Jackson was already angry enough, he didn't need to ignite his wrath further.

The two of them stood on the bridge for Norns knew how long, just staring at each other, unheeding of the war that was happening around them.

"Percy –" Loki started, then broke off halfway, leaping backwards to avoid a deadly slash that would have taken his head clean off, bringing his staff up to block the blow from the second sword as Percy disappeared and reappeared in front of him.

"Don't call me that." The demigod hissed, his green eyes darkening with rage. He shoved against his sword, pushing the god backwards.

Loki narrowed his eyes, his mind racing ahead. There wasn't much time for him to fully explain everything to his lover – ex-lover, by the looks of it – and he could only hope that Percy would be willing to listen to him after all this was over. If they lost, well, he wouldn't even need to bother about that anyway.

The trickster god took a deep breath and locked everything unnecessary to the battle deep in the recesses of his mind, clearing his thoughts to focus on his current opponent.

The two raven-haired beings stood across from each other, their favored weapons in hand, uncaring of the events happening around them. Loki cracked a smirk first, raising a challenging finger, "Come on then."

Percy snarled and dashed forward, Anaklusmos flashing a deadly blood-red arc in the morning sun. Loki blocked the incoming blow, then danced out of the serpent bite of the silver sword. He remained on the defensive, his mind analyzing each move executed by the demigod. After several moments, the god switched to the offensive. Twirling his staff, he blocked an overhead slice and lashed out with a foot, catching Percy in the chest. The demigod flew back and hit the ground, rolling immediately to the side to avoid getting skewered by the staff. He leapt back to avoid another deadly kick to the chest, feeling the bruises that were left behind the first time.

Percy brought both swords up in an 'X' formation just in time to catch the pointed end of the staff before it buried itself into his chest. He looked up just in time for a bolt of energy to explode in his face sending him flying backwards once more.

Landing on the hard surface of the bridge painfully, Percy hissed, well if that's how he wants to play... he thought.

He flipped himself upright, sending a shard of ice in the god's direction. Loki had never been so glad for his fast reflexes as he narrowly avoided a shard to the eye. He hastily erected a shield against the barrage of shards that were sent his way, responding with a simple spell for fire, melting all the ice that was headed his way. Percy scowled and vanished, reappearing once more in front of Loki. The god hissed and blocked his strike yet again, one foot already pivoting away from the demigod to dodge his other strike...

Too late did he realize that the second sword was nowhere to be found. The god's eyes widened, but he couldn't regain his footing in time to avoid the water that wrapped around him, throwing him backwards. Loki's mind blanked when he fell off the bridge, memories of darkness and vileness consuming his vision –

He slammed into something hard, back arching up in pain. Loki opened his eyes to find himself on a white sheet of ice, seemingly floating out of nowhere. He looked up to see Percy land on the ice, his face impassive and stony. The god felt a sense of déjà vu, but shoved all feelings to the back of his mind, gripping his staff tightly as he stood up, forcing his memories of the Void away.

The god sneered, letting a mocking smile curl on his lips, "Is that the best you can do?"

The demigod's only response was to narrow his eyes angrily.

Loki had but one second's notice before water exploded all around him. It was his turn to vanish, and he tackled Percy, the two of them falling to the ground before Loki rolled off him, a red spike taking his place where he had been a mere second ago. The god swept his staff at Percy's feet, who jumped, his right hand opened as he sent another wave towards the god. Loki snarled and fired a bolt of energy at the demigod, who jumped out of the way.

Loki parried an attack from Percy, dropping his staff – he filed the image of Percy's shocked face in his mind and lunged forward, ducking underneath the sword and slashing upwards with a dagger that had appeared in his hands. Percy hissed as the blade bit into his cheek, drawing a thin line of blood. Oceanic green eyes blazed with anger as the waters of Asgard responded to the call. A whirlwind built up around him, though Percy wasn't too aware of that fact but it didn't seem to affect the god he was fighting. In fact, the only indication that Loki was affected by the budding hurricane was the way the wind ruffled his hair and his clothes. Percy gripped his sword tighter and the Aether rippled around it angrily, reacting to his rising emotions.

The two of them clashed again and again, sparks flying whenever their blades made contact, the air bursting when magic and elements met. Loki had centuries of experience behind him, as well as a near infinite arsenal of magic and seidr within him. On the other hand, Percy had versatility and the unpredictability of the ocean, making him able to match the god of lies blow for blow.

Loki flung another spell at Percy, who dodged and gave the god his own size in power. A gigantic fist made from water punched Loki, sending him flying through the air. The god snarled and threw his dagger at the demigod after righting himself, the fire-coated blade whizzing past Percy's ear. The two of them sported several cuts on their arms and legs, their chests heaving as they tried to catch their breath, but otherwise looked none the worse for wear.

Loki bared his teeth and retrieved another dagger, seemingly intent on gouging out his lover's – ex-lover's – eye. Percy sneered and raised his sword similarly, the water beneath his feet churning in anticipation. Time stood still as the two of them stood opposite each other, their power thickening the air.

Both parties vanished almost simultaneously, appearing in the middle with a clash, sparks flying from where their blades met. Cold emerald met raging onyx. Loki's seidr flared up around him, shielding him from the outraged aura that surrounded him. If he were a lesser man, he would have been quaking where he stood, terrified of the maelstrom before him. As it was, Loki felt stirrings of apprehension in his heart as he faced the boy – man – he loved so dearly, and who he had hurt so deeply. It wouldn't have been half as bad if Percy had been screaming and hurling insults at him. Instead, he was faced with a silent but deadly opponent, who knew how to channel his rage into an efficient weapon.

Loki hissed as the Aether-powered sword sliced through his side, chiding himself internally for not paying attention before returning the favor with his dagger coated in liquid fire. The wound which he dealt to Percy cauterized immediately, which was more than he could say for his own wound. Loki twisted to avoid another volley of shards, darting forward, slashing at Percy's chest. The demigod jumped back, bringing his sword up to block the next swipe from the god. He slid the sword down to the hilt of the dagger and twisted it hard, causing the weapon to fly out of Loki's hands. His triumphant smirk lasted all of two seconds before a cold hand clamped down on his wrist, pulling him forward. He yelped and dropped his sword as the god pressed on a bundle of nerves on his wrist.

Not to be outdone, Percy snarled and twisted in the god's grip, trying to break free of the hold that Loki had on him. He felt the Aether encircle his wrist once more and tried to use it, but before he could even think of forming a weapon to stab the god with, Loki moved.

He felt the god's hot breath by his ear, and the words "I'm sorry" filtered through his brain before he felt phantom claws digging into his right arm and pulling –

Loki closed his eyes and winced as Percy screamed – it wasn't a sound that he wanted to hear ever again, but he suppressed the burning in his eyes, using his entire body to hold the demigod still as his seidr drew the Aether out. The Infinity Stone had bound itself too tightly to Percy's life force for it to be anything other than painful. Even with the stunt that he pulled on the hero which left him at the mercy and wrath of his brother and the Avengers, the Aether was still tightly bound to the demigod. It was a powerful tool, yes, but it was a double-edged sword. For Percy to have been able to use it as a raw artifact was commendable enough, but a foolish move. The Aether – threatened by external forces, had bound itself to the nearest host which had offered its being to it. It had remained dormant until Percy had tried using it, wherein the gem had dug its claws into his life force, slowly strengthening its hold on its user until it was almost impossible to remove it.

Throwing Percy to death's door had weakened the link drastically, which should have been the ideal moment to remove the Aether completely. But Loki had forgotten about the gem, too intent on getting Percy back from Hel to remember the parasite that had attached itself to his lover. Training with it in Asgard had been uncalled for, and Loki knew of the dangers that lurked beneath the shimmering visage of the blood red stone. Even the Allfather had warned Percy of the possible consequences, when the boy had reluctantly told the god what the king of Asgard had said. To Loki, telling Percy of the consequences outright would do nothing to deter him from using the Aether, in fact, the god was willing to bet that the demigod would train even harder to fully utilize the gem's full potential, damning himself in the process.

It had left him with one choice, one option – the only one he didn't want to take. Loki remembered the looks of betrayal and shock on the faces of the Avengers, the look of rage on his brother. Remembered the feeling of warm blood coating his fingers as he dragged his dagger across Percy's throat, the disbelieving look in his lover's eye as he fell. The god had washed his hands clean the moment he could, but the stains remained in his mind for a long time after.

That had weakened the Aether's hold on Percy once again, but it wasn't enough for him to remove it painlessly. As he listened to Percy's agonized screams as he drew the Aether out of its host, he desperately wished that there was another way for this to happen. Apologies rang in his mind as he completed the process, letting Percy down gently to the ice he had formed, semi-conscious with the pain that had consumed him. Loki placed a hand on the demigod's chest, feeling the strong heartbeat beneath him and said once more, "I'm sorry Percy."

Then he vanished.

Agent Tyler didn't know when he decided to just accept the fact that there were teenagers that had joined the battle against the chitauri, but sometime during the fight, he had apparently made up his mind. A scowl was perpetually etched on his face by now, a stark contrast to the expression that the girl fighting beside him had. She was grinning fiercely enough to send chills down any man's spine, but the chitauri – being mindless as they were, were hardly daunted by her terrifying grin.

Tyler was actually glad that he wasn't on the opposite end of the battle because if it meant fighting a girl like that, he would gladly surrender. Thalia didn't just stand back and fire her arrows, she leapt headfirst into the throng of chitauri. He didn't know how she could find the time to draw the bow, knock the arrow and fire it when the chitauri was just a meter in front of her – but she did it. She even took the arrow from the eye socket of one chitauri and stabbed it into the throat of a second before pulling it out and firing it into the heart of a third.

That wasn't to say that Tyler was useless though. Far from it in fact. His aim was one of the truest in SHIELD, second only to Hawkeye – though that wasn't hard to be because the guy could shoot more than a hundred yards and hit his target dead on without even looking. Nevertheless, his sharpshooting skills only meant that he could save on firing unnecessary bullets, usually only one or at most two bullets were used to kill an alien. He fought hand to hand as well, using his hands, legs, entire body if needed to break the chitauri seven ways. Thalia herself had complimented his fast reflexes, though it was wrapped in more condescension than he had ever heard in a sentence.

It was no surprise then when a boy fell out of a shadow, he turned and fired his gun.

The bullet struck a metallic shield inches before it buried itself in the boy's head, the shield clattering to the ground loudly. All of them stood at a standstill for several heartbeats before –

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Thalia screeched, shocking the two males out of their shock-induced stupor.

"I – what?" Tyler stuttered, his brain trying to catch up.

"Put that gun down now or I will fry you where you stand!" Thalia shouted, causing Tyler to snap to attention.

"Put the gun down? I don't even know if that's a hostile or not –"

"I am right here and I can totally hear everything you guys are saying." The boy interrupted, giving them both a dark glare as he stood up, brushing dust off his black jeans.

Tyler aimed the barrel of his gun at the teen's chest, a finger on the trigger as he gave a glare of his own. "Can somebody just tell me what the hell is going on here?" he hissed, "The five W's, go." He barked, staring at the boy who had dropped out of what seemed like a shadow.

Said boy just snorted and crossed his arms, "What is this, an interrogation? Fine," he said bitterly, "Name's Nico, son of Hades and manipulator of shadows, which is how I got here by the way, through a shadow, in case you were wondering. And I'm here because of the alien population that's currently trying to imitate the most annoying insects on earth." The demigod scowled, "That good enough for you?"

Tyler stared at him, "What the hell is a son of Hades?"

Nico blinked in surprise and looked at Thalia, "You didn't tell him?"

Tyler scowled, "Tell me what, exactly?"

Thalia, on her part, just crossed her arms irritably, "Look, I was gonna tell him alright? It's not as if the battlefield is the best way to break the news anyway!"

Nico snorted, "Bull, you're leading us blind here if you don't tell him. What if his men decides to shoot us?"

"They won't." Tyler cut in, still glaring at the two of them, "My men are not so barbaric as to shoot a couple of teenagers when they are obviously helping, us, nor do we actually shoot teenagers unless there's a valid reason."

The two teens just looked at each other, seemingly communicating through their eyes. Tyler sighed inaudibly, "What is it that you are supposed to tell me that might prevent me from shooting you both in the head?"

"Guess there isn't any way to say this easily," Thalia muttered. She looked at Tyler, her electric blue eyes piercing, "We're demigods."

Tyler blinked once, twice, then –

"What?"

Steve waded through the throngs of chitauri, ducking underneath their shots and slamming his shield in their faces, breaking their bones when he could. He winced every time he heard the pained scream of an Asgardian warrior who had not ducked in time to avoid the chitauri's weapon. The smell of leather, sweat and charred flesh soon imprinted itself into his mind, and he learnt to push it to the back of his mind.

Steve sprinted as soon as he got clear of the chitauri, taking down a few stragglers as he went to prevent them from backstabbing anyone. He shouted a warning and threw his shield, making sure that Clint ducked before he got beheaded unnecessarily. The archer had his back against the wall, firing arrow after arrow into the horde which pressed up against him. He was doing well enough, though any longer and the archer would probably be overwhelmed by the horde. Steve caught his shield and fought his way into the horde, covering Clint when he needed it as he continued to fire a stream of arrows.

"Hey Cap! Sorry for the trouble!"

Steve shook his head, "How did you end up on the ground?" he asked, dodging an attack and returning it with one of his own.

"Well about that..."

Steve turned just in time to see Clint's guilty look before lightning erupted all around him.

The Captain threw himself at Clint, shielding the two of them from the assault.

When it ended, he leapt to his feet, ready to give Thor a piece of his mind for his brainless attack. When his brain registered the sight before him though, his words stuck in his throat.

"You." He said quietly, gravely.

Loki sighed exasperatedly, "You have no idea how many times I have heard that today Captain."